Reinventing the Wheel? Early Humans Invented Prehistoric ‘Swiss Army Knife’ Everywhere They Lived
Levallois-toolmaking technique didn’t spread from Africa and Europe: It was locally invented in Asia too, suggests new paper
Archaeology
Stunning Fresco of 'Leda and the Swan' Sex Scene Found in Pompeii
Discoverers say this 1st century image of mythological bestiality is ‘exceptional and unique’ for its sensual and explicit portrayal of the episode that ultimately set in motion the Trojan war
Missing Piece of Antikythera Mechanism Found on Aegean Seabed
Bronze disk unearthed by archaeologists in same wreck where original 2,200-year-old computer had been found; also located bits of the ship that Jacques Cousteau and looters hadn't destroyed
'Suddenly I Saw Eyes': Jesus’ Face Discovered in Ancient Israeli Desert Church
Very little early Christian art has survived the centuries in the Holy Land – but then an Israeli art historian looked at the apse of a ruined Byzantine church in Shivta, and saw Jesus’ face and short curly hair
Archaeologists Find Mummified Sacred Beetles and Cats in Ancient Egyptian Tombs
Crocodiles also found among the animals embalmed to gratify the gods of the Fifth Dynasty 4,500 years ago
World’s Earliest Figurative Art Wasn’t in Europe, Archaeologists Reveal
Prehistoric people in Southeast Asia were decorating their caves with cattle drawings and hand stencils in Borneo as early as 52,000 years ago, thousands of years before the rock artists of Europe
Graffiti of Competently-drawn Ships Found in 2,000-year-old Cistern in Israeli Desert
Whoever drew the boats in the Roman-era water reservoir in Be'er Sheva knew exactly how to build them, the archaeologists say
Gauls Perfected Art of Decapitation by Embalming Enemy Heads for Posterity
Severing ears and penises as trophies of war is all very well but then proof of identity becomes tricky
Neanderthal Children Got Badly Sick in Winter, Study Shows
Analysis of Neanderthal teeth from France found earliest known exposure to lead 250,000 years ago, and deduced that they nursed until late toddlerhood
Desert Farmers in Israel Invented Unique Farming Method 1,000 Years Ago
Method of growing trees in pits irrigated by groundwater began in the Negev, and spread throughout the region despite the Crusader invasion
Birds Inherited Colorful Eggs From Dinosaurs, Scientists Prove
Maniraptors that evolved into birds had exactly same pigments in their eggshells as today’s avians, while triceratops and sauropods had none
Israelites in Biblical Dan Worshipped Idols – and Yahweh Too, Archaeologists Discover
Finds in the northern biblical city of Dan suggest that even if King Jeroboam pushed worship of golden calves and goat demons to spite Jerusalem, there was a big YHWH temple
Archaeologists Debunk Theory That Farming Ruined Our Health
Chew on this: Hunter-gatherers and somewhat later early farmers in Southeast Asia had different problems but similar disease loads, Australian researchers show
Dead Sea Scroll Fakes Abound, and Scholars Admit They Share the Blame
By authenticating artifacts of unknown origin, researchers have unintentionally abetted their dissemination around the world, including to the Bible Museum in Washington
Archaeologists Seek Signs of Joshua's Conquest in Last Unexplored Biblical City
Scrambling to save the last unexcavated biblical town from dirt bikers, archaeologists have found layers going back more than 4,000 years, since before Joshua's time
Do Jews Believe in the Devil?
Satan didn’t arise from Hell fully formed. The concept of an ultimate Evil One was apparently borrowed from the Persians and continued to evolve throughout antiquity
Tel Aviv's New Nature Museum Just Discovered Human Evolution
The new exhibit 'What makes us human?' at the Steinhardt Museum of Natural History finally chooses to side with science and address the scientific facts of evolution, but the omission of Darwin's theories as well as public reactions make it evident that it's soon to call this a success
Huge if True: The Archaeological Case for Goliath
Is the story of the Philistine champion Goliath a distant memory of an event that took place in the 11th century B.C.E. or a fable by priests conspiring in Jerusalem 400 years later?
Religion, Science Clash as Archaeologists Restore Ancient Jewish Catacomb in Rome
New finds in the 2,000-year-old underground cemetery include the first Hebrew inscription at the site, as well as signs that Christians and Jews may have shared the burial space
Decapitated 2,000-year-old Skeletons Unearthed at Downtown Jerusalem Dig
Most of the 125 skeletons belonged to women and children from the Jewish Pharisee sect, who were likely massacred by king Alexander Yannai of the rival Sadducees, archaeologists say